Vanguard Religion and Faith
The Vanguard faith is one of deep connection with the gods, and one that is focused heavily on concepts of good, grace, and purity. The Vanguards believe that the ultimate life is one guided by a person's kindness of heart, and their zeal for the will of the "pure gods". According to the Vanguard, a life like this can hope to spend their eternity in their heaven, "Hyarvingar". (Note that this page is written from the perspective of Vanguard beliefs, and may not be totally factual. The nature or character of the gods may not be changed except by an Admin, and most likely the specifics differ from what is here.) Vanguard beliefs on Magic Fire The practicing of magic involving fire is highly dishonorable amongst the Vanguard. Fire is believed to be rage in a pure form. The Vanguard, from a magical standpoint, dispise it. For contemporary use, such as in fireplaces, it is deemed fine. Fire is associated with Tristian, the Nether, and Heran, all of them being feared by the Vanguard. It is not impossible to use fire magic as a Vanguard. However, getting caught could mean possibly getting arrested, or even banished. Lapis Lazuli Lapis Lazuli is a very important ore to the Vanguard Empire. They believe that Lapis Lazuli is the ore of the Gods. Long ago, the Gods gave to the first Emperor of the Vanguard a fine staff made of purely Lapis. The magical properties of Lapis are psychological alteration and life force collection, as well as a type of purifier. Lapis is often used during rituals and to build very important structures. Vanguard mages often wear a small trinket consisting of Lapis. It is rumored that if any non-mage had prolonged exposure to Lapis, they would have strange side-effects. The Gods 'All god's names pending!' Sephor Sephor is the god of wisdom and balance, and is always mentioned first in any religious ceremony. He is considered to be the greatest and oldest god, for he is respected and in commune with all gods. Sephor's nature is to keep the world in a sort of equilibrium of the gods and mortals. What this balance is, only he knows, but his will is shown in literally everything that occurs in the world. Every occurrence of chance, every event that happens is said to be governed by him. Sephor is the only god that has a part of him that is omnipresent and omniscience, existing everywhere and knowing everything. This does not mean he personally is in dominance and control of the entire universe, but rather that he is a manifestation of the universe in a god form. Since he is the most difficult concept to understand, and has such little helpful contact with the mortal world, he is seen by the common man as the "god's god". Most acknowledge his existence, but do little to commune or honor him other than ceremonious mention. When he physically appears, it is usually as an old man with pure white hair and skin glowing with an intense light. Mearla Mearla is the god of the woman, grace, beauty, and nature. She guides and ministers mortals in the ways kindness and grace, and gives many physical gifts to them over the years through nature. The elven trees and giant vines came from seeds gifted to the elves long ago within the temple of Mearla. Mearla usually appears as a beautiful woman with long golden hair, wearing a white gauzy dress. Her eyes are a brilliant iridescent blue, able to transfix even the strongest man. The purpose of this is to make her personal appearance only bearable by women. Ahrgo Ahrgo is the god of men, strength, and power. He ministers to mortals by teaching of how a man or woman may hone their potential strength, both physically and spiritually, to become powerful forces for good. He is sometimes known as the god of war, for he most closely supports his people in battle and aids them against the enemy. Ahrgo appears to mortals as a tall, muscular man wearing a cloth around his waist. Vanguard men traditionally wear an image of Ahrgo embroidered by a woman onto a scarf worn beneath their armor as a sign of their faith in Ahrgo. Myra Myra is the goddess of the moon, water, doctors, and health. Myra guides mortals in the ways of healing and calmness. She is often considered the Godess of Doctors, for she is believed to heal those who pray to her. Myra is also considered to be the moon and the Godess of water. Myra is often depicted as an aging woman carrying a bag of medical supplies and wearing a bright silver dress that glows faintly. Doctors and medics often carry a small trinket or image that resembles the moon to honor Myra. People usually pray to Myra at night or near a pool of water, believing her presence is there. Heran Heran is the God of the sun, fire, rage, and destruction. Heran is believed to be one of the less holy gods, but remains one of the most vital. Heran ministers to mortals as an example of how rage can destroy someone emotionally and possibly physically. Heran is considered the god of the sun, for he has been charged with holding up the sun after he tried to destroy the other gods. He is also the god of fire, for fire is believed to resemble rage and destruction in it's purest form. Heran is the husband of Myra, and is often soothed by her presence. She was the only goddess that tried to help him after he tried to overthrow Sephor. Heran is often depicted as a strong, young man with many scars. He wears broken chains on his wrists and wears ragged pants. On his chest are burns and scars, which are visible for he hardly wears a shirt. His eyes are a bright red and appear to flicker, just like the flames of a fire. Most families pray that Heran does not visit them, for his mere presence is believed to be an ill omen. People do pray to him, mainly hoping that by praying, they can cool his rage. Grenarius Grenarius is the only god that was originally a mortal. He is believed to be half Valkaryian (the servants of the gods) and half human. In his mortal life, he was a great human hunter of the Vanguard. He is the founder and patron god of the Hunt and bowmen. He is a minor god and is not often worshipped. Most just consider him a legend and not a god. The only group that openly worships him is the Knights of Sanctity. He is the only known being in existence to defeat the great three-headed monster Witherian, a being said to exist before any of the mortal races. Grenarius is often depicted wearing a light armor woven of golden and adamantine leaves interlocked, similar to chain mail. He often also is believed to carry Lucem, his holy broadsword and his bow, Diem. He has blonde hair and golden eyes while also being very large in size. He is considered the most physically strong being that ever existed. He is usually prayed to before a hunting expedition, and is attributed to the success of the Knights of Sanctity. His symbol is usually a falcon, since he was known to have a falcon companion, according to legend. Valius Valius is the God of darkness, death, and inner conflict. Tristian had fallen in love with Myra, the Godess of the moon. So, when Tristian had been trapped in the Nether, he managed to trick Myra into visiting him. When she entered the Nether, Tristian trapped her in there with him. He then had intercourse with her. Shortly after, Tristian let her go after being threatened by Sephor. Myra had a son 9 months later. She named him Valius. After several years of being cared for by Myra, Valius grew of age to take on Tristian's responsibility as the God of Death. Since he was born of Myra, he also became the God of the night, specifically of darkness. Valius was born with a hatred towards the other Gods, except for Myra. However, due to Myra's caring nature, he grew to love mortals. However, due to his responsibilities, he often cannot help out mortals like the other Gods. Valius is depicted as a young man with white hair, pure black eyes, pale skin, and wearing a long dark robe. People hardly ever pray to him, except that he might guide their deceased loved ones to Hyarvingar. Tristian be added later Myths and Legends The Staff of Sephor The Staff of Sephor is a magical staff that was gifted to the first Emperor of the Vanguard. It led to the discovery of Lapis Lazuli and the founding of the Vanguard Empire. Sephor is believed to have visited the Emperor in a dream. Sephor told him to unite the tribes of the land so that they might become one. Sephor also gave him his staff so that there might be proof that the Gods wanted it to be. The Great Betrayal The Great Betrayal refers to Tristian's attempt at overthrowing his older brother, Sephor. Tristian had grown very jealous of his brother and the other Gods. Being the original god of death, people hardly ever prayed to him, let alone worship him. Tristian then tried to trick Sephor into going to the Nether. However, Sephor knew of his brother's plot and managed to trap Tristian in the Nether with the help of the other gods. Tristian was then forced to perform his duties in his knew prison known as the Nether. Witherian, the Great King of Eternity Not much is known about Witherian, the second most powerful of all mortal beings. He is second only to Grenarian, the mortal hero who slayed him with a holy sword given to him by Argho himself. Witherian went dormant when the mortal races came into existence, at least until the Vanguard began to grow in power. Grenarius, the Holy Knight (founder) of the Knights of Sanctity, took his greatest knights with him to find out what happened to the dwarves city of Heldrin. They found the awoken Witherian, who killed most of the knights within moments. A great battle commenced, which ended in the death of Witherian, as well as the corruption of Grenarian. He died a few months later from an unknown cause, believed to be the curse of Witherian. The only survivor of that fight to have children was Nathaniel Web I of the ruling family of the Vanguard to this day. Festivals and Holidays